Foster Parent College offers high quality online in-service training to foster, adoptive and kinship parents. Our classes provide research-based parenting information and skills delivered in an engaging multi-media format.
Agencies of all sizes, public or private, faith-based or secular, can offer training to their parents through Foster Parent College. We provide 3 options to supplement your agency in-service training program.
Direct Access Program
With this program, even small agencies can provide their own quality online training center. Parents go directly to their agency Web site to access training. Any agency with a Web site and an Agency Account can use this program free of charge. FPC will work with agency Web masters to provide this personalized training program, which takes only minutes to set up.
Agency Account Program
In this program, an agency purchases training units and distributes them to their parents. The built-in Management System provides the agency with the ability to assign courses, track parents' progress on assigned courses, and download all data about FPC use into reports. FPC units cost $10 each and there is no minimum purchase to participate in this program.
Affiliate Program
In this program, the agency agrees to accept Foster Parent College training credits. Foster parents self-register and purchase the training units themselves, then provide the agency with a certificate of completion. Affiliates are listed on our site, and the contact person receives our "Connections" and "Solutions" monthly newsletters, promotional brochures for parents, and Web site links. There is no charge to become an Affiliate Member.
What does Research-Based Mean?
Foster Parent College is the result of projects funded by the National Institutes of Health S.B.I.R. program. Backed by more than $2,000,000 in research-based development funding, our training material is of the highest quality in both content and delivery. To view our reports and independent studies of the content of our Web site -
click here.
Foster Parent College (FPC) is the first and only online resource parent training center to be rated by the California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC). According to the CEBC Web site, "Evidence-based practices are those that have
empirical research supporting their
efficacy." FPC received a "Promising Research Evidence" rating for the scientific research it has conducted and was given the highest rating for "Relevance to Child Welfare."
The CEBC provides child welfare professionals worldwide with easy access to vital information about selected programs related to child welfare. Each program is reviewed and, depending on the level of research evidence for the program, rated utilizing the
CEBC Scientific Rating scale. The programs are also rated for their relevance to child welfare. To view the detailed report for Foster Parent College,
click here.
What are Foster Parent College classes like?
We currently provide two types of classes: the Self-paced Classes and the Advanced Parenting Workshops.
Self-paced Classes begin when the parent first opens the class, which is then available for study for the next 30 days. The audio/video segments typically last 30 minutes and additional time is spent reading the handouts that accompany the class, doing the interactive questions/answer session, and reading/participating with the topic-specific discussion board. When the audio/video segment of the class is completed and the parent has finished the question and answer session, a printable certificate is awarded. Most classes require 1 training unit per person. We currently provide 22 self-taught classes.
Advanced Parenting Workshops have a scheduled start date and span a three-week period. The workshops provide an in-depth look at specific parenting issues and concepts, like parenting styles or problem-solving. The workshops bring together parents from all over the world to work together to solve a challenging issue they all struggle with. The courses usually include a case study that is posted as a "serial" story over the three week course. Each session also includes interactive activities to identify issues and work towards solving the case study problem. These workshops cost 3 training units or $30 per person and provide a certificate of completion for 6 hours of training.
Who is on the faculty?
The courses are developed by nationally recognized psychiatrists, psychologists, pediatricians, counselors, social workers, social researchers and educators. To visit our faculty page -
click here
What is a Training Unit?
Training units cost $10 each. Simply, they are units that are assigned to parents to take classes on Foster Parent College. A typical self-taught class will "cost" 1 unit and provide a parent 2 hours of training credit.
What is the Management System?
The Management System is available free to agencies that purchase units. The system allows agencies to register parents, assign and redirect units, create reports, communicate with their parents and more. To gain a fuller understanding of the Management System, please join us for a free Webinar. For the Webinar schedule -
click hereTo explore the system with our online Management Training Tutorials -
click here
Tell Me More About the Management Tools, Please.
The Management Training Tutorials provide quick lessons on the 17 available functions of the Management System. The tutorials average 30 seconds each, can be viewed any time from any computer, and cover these topics:
- Changing the Account Management Information
- Customize Your Organization's Welcome Message
- Create a Subgroup
- Adding Members to Your Roster
- Adding a Spouse or Partner to An Account
- Assigning or Un-assigning Units
- Reviewing a Client's Personal Information
- Viewing or Retrieving a Training Certificate
- Building a Summary Report
- Building a Detailed Report
- Changing a Password
- Changing an Email Address
- Emailing an Individual
- Emailing Your Group
- Blocking or Unblocking Courses
- Creating a Subgroup and Assigning Units
- Transferring Members into Groups or Subgroups
To access the online tutorials,
click here
How does Foster Parent College help us inform our parents?
We provide two-way website links, newsletters, personalized brochures, and press releases that can help parents learn about the Web site and online training.
How much will it cost to get started?
FPC does not charge to set up an account. An agency can purchase as few as 10 training units to get going. We recommend starting with 2 training units per in-service parent who has computer access (generally 60% of foster parents). Our staff is available by phone to help you determine exactly how many units you need to get started.
How do I budget for online training?
Our staff will be glad to assist you in preparing the online training portion of your budget submission. Please call us for guidance.
- Email us at fpc@northwestmedia.com or call 800-777-6636 or 541-343-6636 and ask to speak to a Foster Parent College Agency Account Representative.
- Sign up for one of our regularly scheduled Webinars to take a live tour of the site or to get training on how to use our management system - click here.
